CWD has found its way to the Natural StateJONESBORO — We knew it was just a matter of time, but chronic wasting disease (CWD) has entered the natural state. CWD is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy of cervids (deer family). CWD was found in an elk that was killed by a hunter and tested by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC). Shortly afterwards, a deer was found dead that tested positive for CWD in Northern Newton County. Should we panic because our deer herd is about ...

Staggered four-year terms don't get much support in latest poll Over 200 voted in our latest online poll and it's pretty clear you want city Alderman to keep their two-year terms. The question: This November Russellville voters will decide if they want city Alderman to move to four-year staggered terms or stay with the current two-year terms. Do you agree that the terms should be extended to four years? Responses: 75% - No, leave it the way it is. 21% - Yes, move to a four-year term 4% I'm undecided. There...

How Arkansas became part of the U.S.A young and still fragile United States had managed to stay out of the bloody wars stemming from the French Revolution in Europe, but events seemed to slowly entangle the nation in the conflict. The French emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, seemed unstoppable and devoured one neighbor after another. By 1803, Napoleon appeared to have his sights set on America. What could have been a disaster for the United States instead became one of the nation’s g...

History Minute: The Dalton Gang, a tale of outlawsThe 1880s and 1890s saw the rise of some of the most notorious criminals in American History, mostly riding the dusty trails of the West. One of the most infamous was the Dalton Gang, made up of outlaws from Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The Dalton Gang terrorized the frontier, with a string of murders and robberies stretching from Texas to Kansas. The Dalton Gang was led by three brothers from Kansas. Their parents, Lewis Dalton and Adeline...

Poll results, Yell and Johnson getting wet vote?About 400 of you voted in our last online poll and the results were interesting. The question: Which county, Yell or Johnson, would get enough petition signatures to take approving liquor sales to the November ballot. Both counties are working to garner enough signatures prior to the upcoming deadline. Pope County doesn't have a petition be circulated. The results: 18% said neither county would get enough signatures. 19% said Yell Co. would ge...

Reader picsWe hope everyone has seen our call to submit your best photo. The theme is, Signs of Spring and the deadline to submit your high-res photo is March 20. The newsroom will choose the best of the best and publish them in a future edition of The Courier. The photos should be submitted to info@couriernews.com Look forward to seeing what Spring in the River Valley looks like through our readers eyes.

History Minute: A look at the life of Gov. Elias ConwayElias Nelson Conway was the fifth governor of Arkansas. He presided over a prosperous two terms in office and was part of the dominance of the Conway family in the state in the decades after joining the Union. Conway was born in eastern Tennessee near the North Carolina border in 1812. His father, Thomas Conway, was a successful planter. With his wife, the former Ann Rector, they had ten children, including seven sons. His father arranged for ...

An interesting look at McClellan-Kerr WaterwayThe Arkansas River flows across four states, from the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, across the plains of Kansas and Oklahoma, and into Arkansas before emptying into the Mississippi River. Though its importance to Arkansas has always been unquestioned, leaders in Oklahoma and Arkansas began to realize by the 1920s and 1930s that it could it could be so much more. Through the tireless efforts of two men – John McClellan and Robert Kerr – this dre...

William Grant, noted Arkansas composer in the 1920s through the 1940sWilliam Grant Still was a noted composer of popular and classical music. Though facing a difficult childhood, the Arkansan overcame his early setbacks and found the way to let his artistic spirit soar. Still was born in May 1895 in Woodville, Mississippi, in the southwestern corner of that state. His father died shortly after he was born, leaving him and his mother penniless. She soon moved with him to Little Rock to live with her mother. Even...

Gas station glitch lets drivers fill up for penniesA computer glitch led to a brief price war between two gas stations in northwest Ohio, allowing some drivers to fill their tanks for pennies per gallon. WTOL-TV reported a computer malfunction dropped prices at one north Toledo gas station, and another across the street lowered its prices to stay competitive last Sunday. Customer Taylor Kline told the station he filled his empty tank for just 26 cents. The extra-low pricing lasted at least thr...

History Minute: Cherry missed out on second termPolitical winds shift rapidly. In the 1950s, the Arkansas political winds swept up several promising politicians, including Gov. Francis Cherry. Though an able and otherwise honest man, Cherry was one of only five governors in state history not to be elected to a second term. Francis Adams Cherry was born in 1908 in Fort Worth, Texas, the son of a railroad conductor. As a child, the family moved across Texas and Oklahoma. The family settled in...

Conger shaped higher education in ArkansasOf the many figures to shape higher education in Arkansas, John Conger has perhaps the most unique experience. Throughout his leadership career, he served as president of five colleges, including three in Arkansas. John William Conger was born in Jackson, Tennessee, in 1857. His father was an architect. He earned a bachelors degree from Union University in 1878, followed by a masters degree in 1885. One of his earliest duties as an educator wa...

Suspect steals patrol carPolice said a Pennsylvania shoplifting suspect is in custody on charges that he briefly stole a police car. Springettsbury Township police said the bizarre chain of events began shortly before 1 p.m. Monday. That’s when police responded to call Marlo Harvard, Jr., 21, of Baltimore, had left a Wal-Mart with some stolen merchandise. Police spotted Harvard near a bus stop and gave chase, and when one officer left his car to join in, Harvard circl...

The failure of multiculturalismJust as radar warns of approaching storms, so does the flood of migrants entering Europe warn us of a deluge yet to come, not only for Europeans, if they continue to allow unrestricted immigration, but for the United States. Reports that women in Cologne, Germany, have been groped and robbed by men described by authorities as having “a North African or Arabic” appearance should be warning enough, but there are other and more ominous warnings t...

Remembering when the music diedA nice reader wrote, “You include old 50’s song lyrics in your column often you must be an old rock ‘n roll fan. So, tell me, when do you think our music was born and when did it die?” The birth, Ralph? Many say it began with Bill Haley and the Comets recording “Rock Around the Clock.” And, for its death, I’m sure you refer to the plane crash killing Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the ‘Big Bopper’ Feb. 3, 1959. A day immortalized by Don McLea...

News Thoughts: Police recover another load of stolen cheeseFor the second time in a week, police in Wisconsin recovered a stolen load of cheese worth tens of thousands of dollars. Marshfield Police Lt. Darren Larson said 41,000 pounds of parmesan cheese worth $90,000 was stolen from a Marshfield distributor Jan. 15. A semi picked up the cheese that day, but it never reached its intended destination in Illinois. Larson said investigators received a tip Thursday that the cheese was likely in Grand Chute...

Burglary suspect identified after locking keys in carA man suspected of burglarizing two Alaska businesses was delayed in his get-away by locking his keys in his car. A call to a cab company helped open the car but also led to his identification. Surveillance video led police in North Pole, a city 14 miles south of Fairbanks, to seek a warrant for Joseph Michael Barria, 27, who is suspected of stealing tools, stereo equipment and other property from a laundry and a fitness business. The Jan. 6 v...

History Minute: Anderson a pioneer in making movies popularModern moviegoers often go to the movies looking for newer and more dazzling feature for their movies, looking for clever computer-generated graphics, stirring soundtracks, stereo surround sound, and high-definition digital pictures. At the turn of the century, movies offered none of those, only grainy, flickering images without any sound at all. Arkansas native Gilbert M. Anderson became a pioneer in making movies popular with the American pu...

History Minute: Glover paved way for higher educationAt the beginning of the 20th century, Arkansas education was still in a very primitive state. One man in particular brought higher education to thousands of Arkansans in an unparalleled effort. With one piece of legislation in 1909, Robert Glover introduced what became four prominent universities in the state and opened limitless opportunities for generations of Arkansas students. Robert William Glover was born in Grant County in 1866 into a f...

The night the Holy Ghost visited the MethodistsRemember Ray Stevens’ crazy song about the Mississippi squirrel causing a revival in the Pascagoula church? I’m here to tell you about a similar event that took place in Carthage. It happened during a “Watch Night” service. For those who don’t know, Watch Night is a long service on New Year’s Eve that includes about five hours of singing, testifying, and preaching lasting up until midnight, when the church bell rings in the new year. This is h...